The Plight Before Christmas by Kate Stewart
Holiday Fiction
December 17, 2021, by KLS Press, LLC

Review by Jen

Many of us are still packing away our Christmas decorations and wondering if those red throw pillows can stick around through Valentine’s Day. I have one last bit of Christmas joy you must read!! The Plight Before Christmas by Kate Stewart is a holiday romance, but I swear it’s perfect year round. 

Kate Stewart is one of my fave authors and she does it again with this delightful, hilarious, steamy second chance romance. Set in the mountains at a cozy cabin in North Carolina, our featured couple Eli and Whitney, are thrown together with Whitney’s family to celebrate Christmas. They dated in college for a hot, heavy and emotional eight months and it’s been years since they’ve seen each other. They give off “the one that got away” vibes from the moment they see each other again. Their break up in college was caused by communication issues around Eli’s inability to really commit. He had a reason, a pretty good one at that, but never shared the truth with Whitney. They both moved on, never getting married. Eli now works for Whitney’s brother. Both of Eli’s parents are dead and he has nowhere to go for Christmas, so the brother invites him to his family’s get together. He does this not realizing that Eli and Whitney were lovers. Ouch!!

Meanwhile Whitney’s life is a disaster. She’s a smart, capable marketing pro who just missed out on a major promotion, she broke up with her boyfriend and her car is a junker that needs to be trashed. When she sees Eli walk through the door of the cabin, it’s quite the icing on her crappy life cake! 

Cue awkward greetings and stiff dinner conversations with family. 

Things I loved: EVERYTHING. Yup, it was flawless and exactly what I needed to read. 

Whitney is angry. She was profoundly hurt by Eli in the past and she’s no pushover, it’s not easy for her to even stand next to him. Her brother and sister are terrific characters with their own relationship issues. Throughout the book, the main story is around Eli and Whitney, but you get glimpses of the two other couples, too. They’re all in different stages of their relationships. One is long time married, the other a bit more fresh. It’s true to life, every stage of a relationship has its wonderful discoveries and tingly moments, and its challenges and near break ups. That’s real marriage. 

When you finally learn why Eli was always one foot out of the college romance with Whitney, it’s heartbreaking. And, his grovel is THE best. For fans of the Ravenhood Trilogy, there’s a special surprise in chapter 25! Delicious!!!

Grade A+

Amazon * Goodreads